Saturday, February 15, 2014

Inspired by the holiness of the missionaries, a young tribal Khasi becomes a priest

Inspired by the "honesty and holiness" of the priests he
met as a child, he chose to convert and then accept a vocation to the
priesthood.

This is the
story of life and faith of Fr Bruslee
Lamin, and ethnic Khasi who converted to Catholicism as a teenager. Day
by day, his faith developed until it turned into a vocation for the consecrated
life.

On 26 January, he
was ordained, becoming the first diocesan priest in his community.

The Khasi
are a tribal ethnic group native to Meghalaya, a state in north-eastern India. Most
Khasi still live in the state, but some have moved to neighbouring Assam and
Bangladesh.

In Fr Bruslee's
community, Catholicism came with the missionaries of the Holy Cross when they
arrived in the district of Moulovibazar, where most people are animist and work
in the tea plantations.

The
missionaries opened schools and set up a hostel. When he attended one of these
facilities, the young Bruslee was exposed to Christianity.

In grade
eighth, he expressed a desire to convert. With the support of his family, who
did not hinder his spiritual journey, he was baptised and received his first
Holy Communion.After
completing his studies, Bruslee entered the seminary, where he studied for 12
years.

"Beside
the missionaries I met, my father inspired me to accept my vocation," the young
priest told AsiaNews. "My parents are
very happy that I have become a priest."

"Catholic
missionaries have worked with the tribal Khasi for their social and spiritual
development," said Fr Dominic Sarkar, parish priest inSrimangal.

"Now," he
told AsiaNews, "this community is
offering priests to the universal Church."